


I Know You'll Take Care of Me, No Matter the Cost

by AmendmentF01



Category: The Dragon Prince (Cartoon)
Genre: F/M, Gen, Hurt/Comfort, Love
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-20
Updated: 2020-05-20
Packaged: 2021-03-03 05:01:58
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 4,302
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24289366
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AmendmentF01/pseuds/AmendmentF01
Summary: Callum, Rayla, and Ezran have returned to Katolis from Xadia. They are living at peace there, but, as of late, Callum has been feeling ill. And, over the course of last night, his condition worsened very rapidly, and is now GRAVELY ill. Rayla is ready to do whatever it takes to heal him, however, things go out of even more out of hand when Claudia comes back to Katolis...claiming she has a "cure" for Callum. Rayla is very worried about this, but she wants to cure him, in any way she can. Even if it involves meeting with an old enemy...
Relationships: Callum & Rayla (The Dragon Prince), Callum/Rayla (The Dragon Prince)
Comments: 3
Kudos: 23





	I Know You'll Take Care of Me, No Matter the Cost

**Author's Note:**

> -Hello and welcome to my first work on the Archive!
> 
> -This is also my first Dragon Prince fan fiction. I used to write fan fictions for the video game series of Destiny and Red Dead Redemption. But it's nice to change it up a bit.
> 
> -RAYLLUM IS THE BEST THING TO EXIST AND YOU CAN'T CHANGE MY MIND!!
> 
> -Ahem. Let's get on with the story, shall we?

Callum was sick. He had been for the past week and a half, but he was not getting any better. Rayla was sleeping on the floor next to Callum's bed. She had her head on the post nearest to Callum's head, so she can be closest to him if anything happens.

She fell asleep because there was no other noise except Callum's, albeit faint, breathing. However, Rayla woke up when she realized...the noise...it's not there anymore! She got up hurriedly and took Callum's pulse. It was there, thankfully, but very weak.

"It's been a week or more like this now...something's got to give!" said Rayla, pushing a rag hard to Callum's forehead. It was obvious now that, after the week and a half that Callum had been in his bed, sick as a dog, she was desperate to save Callum's life, whatever it takes. But she doesn't know that anything WILL give. It's only getting worse, and she's tried absolutely everything she can think of. "Come on, Callum. I...I need you..."

She pushes the rag again, wiping off the endless, flooding amounts of sweat that Callum is building up. "I'm...I'm so...I don't know..." He mumbles. "What?" Rayla ponders.

"Hmm..." Callum trails off into a deeper sleep. Rayla takes his pulse again. This time, it's even weaker and more faint than it was just 30 seconds ago. She crawls into bed next to Callum, embracing him in a hug, no matter how sweaty he is. 

"Please get through this Callum...I've tried everythin'! You can't give up now...I love you!" "I'm so cold...everything's cold..." he murmured. Rayla looked up at his face, and kissed him on the temple.

"Ugh, stupid human sicknesses!! Nothin'! Nothin' known to elf can cure this...stupid human sickness!!" She shouted out for the millionth time that week.

Ezran, walking through the door, said, "Rayla, it's so early in the morning...and even if it wasn't, you can't shout that again and again and expect him to get better every time."

"Ezran, you don't need to remind me!" She shouts, making it louder and more hurtful than she actually intended.

"Just like you don't need to remind everyone in Katolis about Callum's "stupid human sickness"! You're doing everything you can, just like I am...just like everyone else is!" Ezran came back.

"You know, when I was younger, Callum used to tell me that doing the same thing over and over again and expecting a different result is the definition of insanity." He said.

Rayla sighed frustratedly. "Are you implyin' that I'm insane, Ezran?!" Rayla demanded.

"No, it's just a human saying that he tells me every so often!" Ezran said.

Rayla sighed again, this time out of exasperation and that 'nothing left to say' feeling you get in an argument.

"Sorry, Ez...I just get so scared I'm gonna lose him...AGAIN! I can't get over that thought...I'm so paranoid!" Rayla put the rag on his head again, but Ezran went over to her and put a hand on her shoulder.

"Don't get yourself all worked up because Callum is sick. He'll get better. All he needs is someone by his who has to be willing to do whatever it takes. Lucky for him, he's got two of those people." Bait groaned in protest. "Three of those people." Ezran corrected himself.

"I know we're willin'! But I've done literally everythin' there is to be known about elven medicine. Some of your human medicine too! We've been to all the doctors in Katolis, too, nothin' is workin'!" Rayla ranted.

The door then opened to reveal a guard. "Your Majesty, apologies for being so early in the morning, but we've got something for you". Ezran nodded. "I'll be right back." He said.

He stepped outside with the guards. Rayla grumbled, but still heard the indistinct conversations going on between Ezran and the guards...and a somewhat familiar female voice.

A few moments later, the door opened back up. "Rayla?" Ezran said. Claudia, with her half white hair, stepped through the door.

"You!" Rayla shouted, unsheathing her blades and going into battle stance.

"Stop!" Ezran said.

"She says she has a cure for Callum!"

Rayla's eyes widen, and she lowers her blades, but doesn't sheath them.

"A cure?" she asked.

"Yes..." Claudia said, "...but I need to be alone when I give it to him."

"Oh, we both know that ain't happenin'." Rayla said, raising her blades again.

Claudia retorted, "Please! You want him to be well, don't you?"

"Of course I do, but-"

"Then let me help!" Claudia interrupted.

"Oh, really? Because I trust you SO much to leave you alone with him." Rayla snapped back.

"Guys, stop!" Ezran shouted. "Rayla, I know this may seem hard to believe, but what if this is really a cure and not a trick? What if this will help Callum get better?"

That, surprisingly, made an impact on Rayla. "What if Ez is right? What if this is the break I'm hopin' will come for him?" she thought.

"Alright, lemme ask you this. What is your 'cure'?" Rayla asked Claudia.

"This." Claudia went into her bag, and pulled out a small vial filled with a neon green slimey substance.

"That...looks suspicious." Rayla said.

"It looks worse than it is! It goes by many names, but I call it Totalivorin. It's designed to cure anything. From a common cold to a full-on plague. It'll help Callum, if you let me try."

"Let's see it in action then," said Rayla. "Go on, do your thing."

"I need to do it alone, like I said!" Claudia said.

"Hmm...lemme think about it. NO." Rayla said sternly.

"Oh come on, do you really think I'd trust YOU with him alone if the roles were reversed?" Claudia said.

At that point, Ezran had had enough. He groaned and pulled Rayla's arms in the direction that led out of the room. From there, Rayla tried to get back into the room, but she grunted and screamed as she was constrained by the both the guards pulling on her arms when she tried. The door closed and locked.

"Ezran!!" Rayla cried. "You really trust her with Callum?!"

"Well what choice do we have?! Callum may die if we don't act fast! You saw how he was before I walked in!" he replied. "Besides, Claudia always cared about Callum, she'd never try to hurt him!"

Rayla immediately tried again to get back in the room, but thanks to the guards, to no avail. She got out of the guard's grasp, and sat down by the door and cried.

"Rayla...he'll be fine. I know it! You just have to give this all some thought before you act." Ezran said.

"But how can I give it thought when-" Rayla was interrupted by the door opening. Claudia walked out and stood in a part of the room that is sort of isolated from Rayla and the others. After a few moments of silence, Callum then walked out of the room.

"CALLUM!" Rayla's heart leapt with joy as she hugged him so tight he almost had trouble breathing. Almost. She grabbed the back of Callum's head and their lips touched. She didn't even give him time to notice Claudia standing right there.

"I appreciate the warm waking up sequence, but uhh...what's this for?"

"How did she...what did she do?" Rayla asked frantically, her hands placed on his shoulders.

"What did who...what? Rayla, what's going on?" Callum asked, with a confused tone.

"Claudia, she..." When Rayla looked at where Claudia was, she was already gone.

"Claudia? She was here?" Callum asked, worriedly.

"Yes! She said she had a cure for your sickness!" Rayla exclaims.

"Wait, woah woah, woah, woah...I was sick?"

"You were more than sick, Callum! You almost died! Like you did when you used dark magic that one time...do you not remember?"

"I don't understand..." Callum said. "How can I not remember this? I feel like I would remember almost dying."

"Oh, no..." Rayla said, in a worried tone. She turned away from Callum.

"What did she do?" She said angrily.

She ran out of the room, down the stairs, seemingly attempting to follow Claudia's footsteps.

"I'm very confused," Callum said.

"Yeah...we have a lot to fill you up on," said Ezran.

The full moon emerged as Rayla picked up Claudia's track (thanks to the things she "picked up" from Corvus). When she finally tracked her down, Claudia started to run. She got on her horse and rode onto the bridge that leads to the exit of Katolis Castle.

Since Rayla knew that she couldn't keep up to a horse on a ground with no obstacles, she cursed in her head and headed back to Callum and Ezran. When she got to that point, Callum and Ezran were just going back into their rooms. She followed Callum into his room and shut the door.

Callum jumped a little when Rayla shut the door. "You always pop up when I least expect it." Callum teased.

"Yeah yeah," Rayla remarked. They both sat down on the edge of Rayla's bed (which is on the opposite side of the room from Callum's).

"So what...exactly happened? I heard most of it from Ez, but I haven't heard your side."

"Well, to begin, you were ill, Callum. Like, gravely ill. I was there...all the way. I could feel your pulse and it was so weak..." Rayla shed a few tears.

"Hey, hey, hey..." Callum put his hand on hers. "I'm alive now. No need to worry. Keep going."

"And then, Claudia came in. She said she had a cure for you. Obviously, I didn't trust her, 'cause...well. You know why." Rayla smiled. "But I got restrained by your brother, and he said that I needed to 'think before I act'."

"I knew Claudia would have a change of heart...I knew she had it in her!" Callum exclaimed excitedly.

Rayla's smile diminished. "Oh, sorry." Callum said, dejectedly.

"Don't worry about it." Rayla reaffirmed. They share a kiss.

"But what does this mean?" Callum asked. "If Claudia's turned back to the good side, then..."

Rayla puts her hand over Callum's mouth. "I don't know...but for now, let's both forget about Claudia.  
I'll stay right here with you...as I know you'd do for me. I love you, Callum," she said.

"I love you too, Rayla." Callum confirmed. "Let's get some rest." 

Callum got up to go to his own bed, but...

"Ah, ah, ah!" Rayla pulled the back of his jacket, making him fall back to her bed. "You aren't goin' anywhere, loverboy," she said. Callum turned back to Rayla to make eye contact and raised an eyebrow. "I dunno about you, but I think I meant 'I'll stay right here with you' literally."

Callum's face turned beet red. "I...okay. I didn't know-" Callum begins but is interrupted by Rayla.

"Shut up and lay down beside me!" she exclaimed. "Before I change my mind."

"Fair, fair enough!"

They both laid down. Rayla put her arm around Callum's stomach and she kissed him on the temple, holding him close. Eventually, they both fell asleep, cuddling each other.

After a few hours, Rayla woke up. She and Callum were both still in the same position as when they fell asleep. However, Rayla woke up with her side feeling wet. Very wet. She looked at Callum's eyes, and, to her horror, he was sweating intensely again, and she saw those massive purple-black circles around them, from the time he used dark magic for the first time...the only time, Rayla was sure.

Except...when had he used dark magic other than his first time? He hadn't been using dark magic behind her back, had he? As soon as that thought crosses Rayla's mind, Callum starts coughing.

A lot.

Endlessly.

Gasping for breath after every series of coughs.

Rayla analyzed the situation, gasped, and put her hand over her mouth.

"HELP!! PLEASE!!" She screamed. Guards (and Ezran) raced into the room and then to Callum.

"What happened?" Asked Ezran.

"I don't know, he just...started coughing, badly...help him, please!!" Rayla cried.

She stood over Callum, comforting him as much as she could as Ezran and the guards did examinations, although they were no doctors.

After a few seconds, the guards jumped and backed away after Callum had begun spouting blood from his coughs into the air. A lot of blood.

Rayla didn't need to say "Callum, please stop, come back!!" out loud for the billionth time in a row, because then she'd just embarrass herself more than she already had.

"I don't see what other choice we have..." Ezran interrupted Rayla's thoughts.

Rayla looked at Ezran as expression changed from a thoughtful look to an outright worried look.

"...we need to see another doctor." Ezran finished.

"What good will that do?!" Rayla screamed. "It's no use. We've been to every doctor in Katolis, and NONE of them have been able to heal him!"

"Every doctor in Katolis..." Ezran says.

"No! We are not travelin' anywhere! He'll die before we get to anyone outside here!"

"Or will he?" said a voice.

Claudia walked back into the room, with her slimey green substance in hand again.

"Are you kiddin' me? I get hearing he's sick one time, but knowing twice? That seems..." Rayla trailed off.

However, before Rayla could stop her, Claudia put her green slime on Callum's forehead, and it then started to spread all around his face. It was literally sizzling like his head was meat on a grill.

"That should do it," said Claudia, starting to walk away.

"Wait a minute!" cried Rayla. "Aren't you gonna tell us what that 'medicine' is doing to him?"

"Curing him..." Claudia smiled, walking away. Rayla grumbled but turned around to see Callum get up again.

She ran over to him with yet another smile on her face. She gave him another massive hug.

"Don't scare me like that again, you big dumb human!" She said as she punched him in the shoulder, in a teasing way.

"Wait a minute..." wondered Callum. Rayla was expecting another 'where am I and what am I doing here' statement, but instead got something completely different.

"Why is an ELF showing affection for me?! What's...what's going on here?!" Callum said, slowly moving back from Rayla.

Almost everyone in the room looked at each other, and then to Rayla, but Rayla just stared at Callum with a look that combined very, very angry and deep sadness. Callum looked back at her with a surprised face, and stopped moving. Mainly because he didn't want to fall off the edge of his bed, but secondly because he saw Rayla's expression. That hurtful, angry expression, and then it almost turning into a Sunfire elf anger mode (even though Rayla wasn't a Sunfire elf), made Callum think for a little bit, before Rayla said quietly to him...

"I will fix this. You have my word." She pulled out her blades, and was now determined to go fully after Claudia this time. No mistakes. Whatever the cost.

Rayla ran the fastest she'd ever run in her life. She saw Claudia get on her horse, and run away, but, Rayla gets a horse of her own and starts riding after her in the almost full but waning moonlight.

"Hey, that's my horse!" cried a guard.

"Just borrowin' it! I swear I'm not stealin' it!" Rayla replied.

Rayla found that riding a horse is actually not that different from a Shadowpaw or Moonstrider, just that the creature's body felt different. But she eventually caught up to Claudia and jumped on her horse, causing Claudia to eventually stop. When Rayla hopped off, she got into a fighting stance.

"Are we really gonna do this?" Claudia asked.

"Are you really askin' that? You took all of his memory of me. How do you think that makes me feel?!" Rayla demanded.

"Horrible!" Claudia remarked.

"Oh, no...way worse than horrible..." Rayla said, her voice breaking. She looks down and sheds a tear at the thought of Callum never remembering their relationship and all their times together.

"Oh, don't worry, elf." Rayla looked up at Claudia, who had a major ear to ear smile on her face. "I'm not killing him...I'm saving him..." Claudia blasted Rayla with a dark magic chain spell that pinned Rayla to the stone cold pavement. "...from YOU!"

Claudia got back on her horse, and rode away...and Rayla noticed she was heading back to Katolis.

"No!!" Rayla screamed. "Stop...PLEASE!!"

Claudia was now gone from Rayla's sight.

"Help me, anyone!!" Rayla tried for a few minutes, but she soon realized it was of no use. The chains were almost as tight as her assassin's binding, but the chains didn't make her lose as much blood flow as the binding did.

"Come on, Rayla, there must be something you can do!" She screamed at herself.

There wasn't...for now.

Hours passed. The sun was coming up. Rayla soon realized that, to break the spell, she would need a dark magic spell to do so. She couldn't even bear the thought of herself using dark magic. And even if she did, she couldn't remember the words Callum used to unchain the dragon. She didn't really want to remember, anyway. But then, to Rayla's surprise, the sky was getting darker and darker by the second. Clouds were rolling in. Thunder was crashing. Rain started to fall.

She then remembered that metal chains are weakened by rust, which can happen by water falling on it. She just had to wait for enough rain drops to fall. She kept trying as the rain soaked the chains (and her), and she eventually broke out of the chains, albeit with a very long and hard struggle.

Rayla's horse was spooked, but she eventually calmed it. She got back on it and rode hard and fast to get back to Callum, who didn't remember her at all...she needed to get that thought out of her head. She got back to Katolis Castle, returned the horse to its owner, and dashed back to Callum's room. She heard loud banging noises coming out of the room.

She attempted to kick the door open, but it wass barricaded and locked.

"Naturally..." She cursed to herself. Guards then came, alongside Ezran.

"Open up!" A guard said.

"It's no use!" Rayla cried. "The door is barricaded and locked."

"I think there's another entrance. But we have to get to the roof." Ezran said. Rayla nodded rapidly, and she and Ezran got to the roof.

"This way!" Ezran said. They got to their destination, which was a window. Luckily, Claudia forgot to barricade it, so they kicked it open.

Claudia turned around, her blackened, possessed-looking eyes staring directly at Rayla. Bait came up again and flashed Claudia with a bright light. Rayla pulled her blades out, and leaped at the confused girl. Luckily, Rayla's blades were very sharp, but unluckily, Claudia apparently did a spell that made her skin as hard as steel. However, Rayla hit her with enough force that her blades break the spell.

"Not so tough, now, are ya?" Rayla smiled. However, Claudia grimly prepared another spell. Rayla's smile diminished.

"You've done nothing but curse him..." Claudia said. "...but now, you will die, and the curse shall be rid from him!"

Claudia started her spell, but before Rayla could attack again, a small, white light came out of her mouth. She was beginning to choke.

"Now, you'll be mine, Callum." Claudia turned around, smiling at Callum.

"WAIT!" Callum said.

"Claudia, I may have known you for all of my life, but I will not let you kill anyone with dark magic, elf or not! I wouldn't do anything of the kind you know it, and neither should you! Look at her!"

They both looked back at Rayla, and see her on the floor, not breathing.

"I will not succumb to dark magic as you clearly have. Claudia, there's still time to save yourself from it! You don't have to stay like this...please, come home!" Callum said, desperately.

Claudia's eyes went back to normal. The white light went back to Rayla's throat, and her breathing started again. She got up from the floor. But Claudia then did something that Callum thought was familiar.

She crumbled down to the ground, in a pile of a million black and white pieces. Ezran and Rayla watched, mouths gaping, as a vibrant dark blue light then started to circle around Callum, entering the center of his forehead. This caused him to pass out, and he collapsed to the floor also.

"Callum!" Rayla exclaimed. She and Ezran rushed to him, but luckily, he didn't crumble like Claudia did.

"We can probably go to a doctor now." Ezran said.

Rayla rolled her eyes and smirked at Ezran.

"Fine."

They hurried to the royal doctor, whose office happened to be in the Castle.

"Doctor!" Rayla called.

"Oh, no!" The doctor exclaimed, seeing Callum's face. "Here, put him the over here."

They put him on a table in the hallway. The doctor checked Callum's pulse, and found that it wass normal. However...

"It looks like he's been heavily exposed to dark magic. He'll need to rest in the hospital for a few days," the doctor finished.

"Anythin' for him to get better." Rayla said.

The doctor nodded. He signaled the nurses to pick Callum up and take him to the hospital.

2 days later...

  
Callum woke up in a bed that felt like his own, although he thought it was a bit smaller. He was very confused when he saw other people roaming around outside, but then saw Rayla sleeping in a chair that was dragged close to his side, and Ezran in a chair on the other side. He smiled. He looked out the window, and saw that it was the wee hours of the morning still. Knowing this, he eventually drifted back to sleep.

He woke up again later that morning to the sight of a female doctor giving him an examination. He jumps a little bit.

"Woah there. You need to rest," she told him.

"Where am I?" Callum asked, confused.

"You're at Katolis hospital," the doctor replied.

"What did I do to get here?" Callum asked.

"Hmm...this may sound a bit worrysome..." the doctor said.

"Go on." Callum said.

"You're here because you'd been heavily exposed to dark magic." She finished.

"Oh no," Callum thought. What would Rayla say about this? He didn't know if he had used dark magic again, by accident or otherwise. All he knew was that he felt very groggy, more so than usual.

"Where's..." Callum drifted in his sentence.

"Oh, your elf friend? She woke up earlier this morning, last I saw her, she wandering down that way to 'strech her legs', she said," the doctor explained.

"I was going to ask where my brother was, but...thanks for letting me know!" Callum said.

"Oh, apologies. I believe I saw him and his pet playing outside." She noted. Callum nodded.

When the doctor finished her examination, Rayla then walked in the room.

"Callum!" She exclaims. "You're awake!"

"Yes, I'd like to believe so," he said, groggily.

"You don't sound that awake. Is he okay?" Rayla asked the doctor as she was leaving.

"He's gonna be fine. He looks like he's been through a lot, though. He needs rest."

"You have no idea." Rayla said quietly as the doctor leaves.

Rayla sat down in her chair next to him.

"So what happened to have me 'heavily exposed to dark magic'?" Callum asked, a bit afraid of the answer.

Rayla just sat there for a little while looking at Callum with a worried face.

"What's that face for?" he asked. "Did I...?"

"No, nothin' like that... I guess I'm... just not ready to tell yet," she said.

"You can tell me anything. You know this, I know this. Unless that's changed recently?" Callum said, worriedly.

"No, that hasn't changed, Callum. I guess I'm just scared you might be scared about what happened," Rayla explained.

"Why would I be scared?" Callum asked.

"...Claudia came." Rayla finally said. She filled him in on everything that happened. From him first being sick to now.

"Why would she do that? Try to turn me against you like that? I feel like there's still good in her, but-" Callum is interrupted by Rayla.

"Callum, when will you wake up?! That's exactly what you were sayin' before you got sick the second time. I'm tellin' you, there is no good in her left!" she exclaimed.

Callum looked away from Rayla with a sad face on.

"I guess I still believe in her because I've known her all my life, but...I don't know anymore. I would hate to just toss her out of my life. You wouldn't want me to do that to you, would you?" Callum asked.

"I already got a taste of that when she took all your memory of me...it hurt, Callum. I thought you'd never remember me." Rayla said.

"Exactly, but I didn't do that purposefully, did I?" Callum asked.

Rayla was silent. She knew he didn't do it purposefully, but she couldn't bring herself to think about what would happen if he did.

"You'll always have me, Rayla." Callum held out his hand, reassuring her. She took it.

"But, I feel like Claudia will always have me in her thoughts, also," he said.

"But what if she somehow comes around again?" asked Rayla.

"Then we'll stand against her together," Callum said, smiling.

Rayla smiled from ear to ear, and the couple touched lips.


End file.
